Original: the old vines are faint, the bridges are flowing, and the old roads are thin. When the sun sets, heartbroken people are at the end of the world.
Translation:? At dusk, a group of crows landed on an old tree with withered vines and made a piercing cry. Under the small bridge, the running water tinkled, and a thin horse on the ancient road struggled against the west wind.
Yangzhou Skinny Horse is another name for female pets in ancient Yangzhou. Yangzhou was the settlement of salt merchants in Huaibei (Huainan) in ancient times. Salt merchants were rich in those days, and their luxury was comparable to that of the royal family. Their wealth also supports a large number of industries that live side by side with them, and "raising thin horses" is one of them. Yangzhou lean horse caters to the abnormal psychological needs of salt merchants.
Thin horse meaning:
Thin horse is an insult to women, which means that women can be ravaged at will like a weak horse. Why is it called "thin horse"? Because couples who are engaged in "raising thin horses" buy young girls from poor families at low prices and sell them at high prices after cultivation, this is the same as the business model of businessmen buying thin horses at low prices and selling them at high prices after fattening, so people call such women "thin horses".
Selection method:
There is an extremely strict appraisal procedure for selecting thin horses, and the most important thing for merchants is the evaluation of thin horse feet. There is also a set of very detailed methods to identify this "three-inch golden lotus", and people have also formulated seven standards, such as "fineness, smallness, sharpness, bending, fragrance, softness and integrity".
Thin horse allusions:
In Qing Dynasty, Ding also described "thin horse" in "Continued Jin Ping Mei". Girls with the first-class qualification will be taught to "play the piano and flute, recite poems and write, draw Go, play backgammon and play dominoes, and be smart in all aspects", as well as detailed makeup artists and physical training. Girls with secondary qualifications can also read some words and play some songs, but they are mainly trained as accountants and know how to keep accounts, so as to assist businessmen and become good assistants.
Girls with third-class education are not allowed to study, but only learn some sewing and cutting, or "frying, steaming, cooking and setting fruit, each with his own skills" and are trained to be qualified housewives. Of course, all these painstaking trainings are aimed at finding a good buyer and selling it at a good price in the future.